History

Uzda District is distinguished by its amazing natural beauty and archeological heritage. The district is known for the noble families of the past, like the Radziwills, Patsys, and Kavechinskys, and famous contemporaries.

Uzda District has a rich and eventful history.

The word “Uzda” is believed to stem from the word “leash”. There is an ancient legend saying that a Tatar khan dropped his auriphrygiate leash while crossing the local river. The golden leash was never found, but it gave a name to the settlement and the river that became known as Vuzda and the Uzdyanka.

Another legend has it that the word “Uzda” originates from the Lithuanian word “uzla” that means “a boarding through a bog”.

One more legend suggests that the name of the town can be literally translated from Tatar as “a settlement on the river Usa”.

The town was first mentioned in chronicles in 1450. Its official founding date is 8 May 1494.

Ancient settlements of the Mesolithic era (9th-5th millennia BC) were unearthed on the right bank of the Neman River not far from the villages of Matetskie and Zamostie.

In the 9th-13th centuries AD the land was a border area between the Principality of Polotsk and the Principality of Turov. For a long time it was part of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. After the second partition of Rzeczpospolita it became part of Igumen District of Minsk Province.

Our land has witnessed many landmark events. One of them was the greatest battle on the Neman River that took place near the village of Mogilno in 1284, during the formation of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania.

Just like the rest of Belarus, our land was sacked by the Tatar invaders and the Army of Napoleon.

Some 20 archeological monuments survive in the district.

Uzda District with the district capital of Uzda was established on 17 July 1924. A state border between the USSR and Poland lay along the western part of the district until September 1939.

On 25 December 1962 the territory of Uzda District was divided between Dzerzhinsky District, Pukhovichi District and Slutsk District.